After this past Winter I have resolved that next year, I am getting out of Dodge. It is not merely the frequent snowstorms, or the relentless cold, or the shearing wind, or the constant overcast skies and dreary days, or the mess on the ground, or even the necessity of layers of heavy, cumbersome weather […]
Red Bud
As soon as I heard media report that we would at last see the sun and enjoy temperatures above 70 degrees, Lola the pup and I made quick plans to take a respite from our long Winter here in the city to enjoy a bit of “west and welaxation“ at Deer Tick Manor. When we […]
Hangdog
I am feeling a little blue the past couple of days. There is no specific cause. Indeed, I would describe the feeling as being mostly a sense impression. I know that I have felt the blues at times in my life, yet, fortunately, by nature I am a happy-go-lucky sort of guy. Thus, I always […]
Living on the Edge
Just the other day I was telling Robyn that I could not think of a subject for my blog piece this week. I then stopped to consider what a prominent feature of my week writing this entry has become for me. It is a time-consuming endeavor. It also takes a fair amount of discipline to […]
Cousins Club
Cousin Judy called out of the blue a few days ago to inform me that she will be here later this week to visit family. She wants me to join them for dinner on Friday and possibly for Sunday luncheon, too. The family members I refer to are her close family members. I expect those […]
Taking Stock
The last time I visited Deer Tick Manor was this past November, just after the Thanksgiving holiday, for the annual rite of closing the place for the winter season. While Lee was alive, we would return at least once during the winter months to check on the place, a visit we typically dovetailed either with […]
Whistling Past the Graveyard
As I wrote last week, I attended the Covid-belated life celebration of an old friend. Other old friends attended, so the event turned into a bit of a reunion for us. People took the opportunity to catch up, which at this stage in our lives seems mainly to center on personal health, children, and grandchildren. […]
Recalling a Friend
A.P. was the imaginary producer behind the imaginary music created by our imaginary air guitar band—the Frazier Thomas Band—by virtue that he was first among us to own a car. We were young, still only semi-responsible. Over the course of several years, we covered a lot of ground together, both literally and figuratively. These friendships […]
Checking All The Boxes
Robyn and I had landed home following our recent trip to Kauai, Hawaii, and I was on the train to the central city where I live. My mind was still flashing to tropical images, but these were images of my first trip to Costa Rica with Lee. It has been twenty-five years or longer. Back […]
You Can’t Take It With You
On Tuesday, I was up and out of bed earlier than usual. Raising a shade and looking out a window, I saw that it was not yet fully light outside. I was preparing coffee when I heard a soft knocking at my back door, which startled me. Because of the early hour, I asked suspiciously, […]
Our Stories
I eagerly read the weekly postings of my fellow authors on this site. In the past week, for example, one writer bid a hopeful adieu to her readers, announcing that she is ready to resume living forward; meanwhile, another writer declared he is going to bid adieu to feelings of personal guilt associated with the […]
The Kitchen Sink
As you may recall, when we left off I was completing the last-minute preparations for my departure to sunnier, warmer climes for a hard-earned, albeit too brief, holiday. Although I was intending to regale you with stories from the West Coast and the beautiful island of Kauai, instead I restart with this account of my […]